Richard gets by with a little help from his fiends!
By: JimOldfield
March 8th, 2012
Magna 2012 special report
Not everyone would make a 650-mile round trip for a five-hour shift behind a bar… but Jersey brewer Richard Emery did exactly that – and what’s more, he did it for FREE!
Hand-Pumped caught up with The Pocket Brewery’s sales manager and chief sparger, to find out what inspired him to make a five-hour commute from the Channel Islands to South Yorkshire, to pull pints as a volunteer barman for a single shift at the giant Rotherham Real Ale And Music Festival last Friday (March 2).
He needed a bus, and coach and 300-mile plane trip – which was delayed by fog for a day – but Richard was determined to make his shift on time, to man the “Scotland” bar in the vast Magna centre on the outskirts of Rotherham at one of the country’s largest annual beer events.
And he got there, with just 10 minutes to spare, to don his “staff” festival T-shirt and find his allocated row of hand-pumps before an onslaught of around 4,000 thirsty drinkers arrived for the four-day event’s busiest session.
Said Richard: “I’ve been coming to the Rotherham festival for nearly 10 years but as I’d volunteered at the two Jersey beer festivals, thought I might as well do the same here – so this is my second year. I first heard about the Rotherham festival from a CAMRA friend in Jersey.”
Richard is no stranger to South Yorkshire though – having originated from neighbouring Sheffield before moving to the Channel Islands 22 years ago. And as co-owner of Jersey’s new Pocket Brewery, he’s no stranger to real ale and hard work either.
His interest in brewing began with some home-brew back in Sheffield and more recently, he discovered his thirst for making ale.
Like fellow Sheffielder Joe Cocker, Richard is now getting by with a little help from his fiends – making among other things a brew called Satan’s Little Helper!
Said Richard: “There was always a presence of CAMRA in Jersey, but I sort of lost interest because all there seemed to be was BBB: ‘Boring Brown Beer’. I decided to treat myself and by negotiating with Patrick at Abbeydale Brewery, brought over a Firkin of Moonshine.
“I bought a beer engine, erected a bar and invited some friends around for a tasting and barbeque. Since then, we had an unofficial beer club and every time I went north in a car, I’d come back with something else. “
Then Richard’s pal Nigel Romeril asked him to help make a beer with some malt extract he’d bought.
“It was the same sort of sticky goo you get in beer kits. We got covered in the stuff and once it was all gone, vowed never to use it again. So we went over to full mash. We spent around 18 months fiddling around with different recipes, trying them out on our very willing taste panel and ended up with our hybrid Pale Ale called Lady Hamilton. It’s a little darker than some but that’s the compromise for the local palate.
“We decided that it was commercial, so we applied for – and were granted – a licence last summer and thus became The Pocket Brewery… so named because a tour of the brewery would take a matter of seconds, notwithstanding explaining the brewing process.
“We now have a portfolio of Lady Hamilton (4.8% ABV), our Jersey stout, Satan’s Little Helper (6.6%); a dark mild, Black Marion which we are still fiddling with and an outrageously strong brown ale called – for now – Malt Teaser (9.5%).”
And despite an arduous trip and a very busy evening behind the Magna pumps, he expects to be back serving at next year’s festival!
To find out more about The Pocket Brewery, or to order some beer, email Richard HERE
